1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is in the field of hazardous liquid waste disposal, and more specifically relates to the structure of an oxidation chamber through which the liquid is conducted and in which the liquid is subjected to the combined action of hydrogen peroxide and intense ultraviolet radiation for the purpose of breaking down the hazardous molecules into simpler and safer compounds.
2. The Prior Art
In U.S. patent application Ser. No. 07/405,206, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,952,376 filed Sept. 11, 1989, titled Oxidation Chamber and assigned to the assignee of the present invention, there was described an oxidation chamber intended for the same general purpose, but differing in certain significant ways. In this earlier chamber the baffles used to define the flow path through the chamber were perpendicular to the ultraviolet lamps. The lamps extended the length of the chamber through oversize holes in the baffles. Unfortunately, when the chamber was operated at high pressure and high flow rates, some of the liquid flowed through the oversize holes, taking a shortcut to the outlet and thereby avoiding the full measure of treatment intended.
A second limitation of the earlier chamber was that the serpentine flow path of the liquid passed back and forth over the banks (A, B, C) of lamps in the sequence A B C B A B C making it impossible to provide a graded or progressively increasing intensity of ultraviolet radiation as seen by the liquid.
In the earlier chamber, particularly in some embodiments, it was necessary to use headers to conduct the liquid to a particular region within the chamber and/or to introduce the liquid uniformly across the flow path. The headers added to the cost and complexity of the chamber, but more importantly, they took up valuable space within the chamber. As will be seen below, the elimination of the headers in the present invention permits an additional bank of lamps to be installed in the chamber.
Further, at least for chambers having the same general proportions as the chamber actually used, the baffling arrangement results in increased flow path length compared to the earlier chamber configuration. Assuming the same volumetric flow rate in each chamber, the liquid in the chamber of the present invention flows considerably faster. The greater velocity results in more turbulence and better mixing, which promote the treatment process.
As will be described more fully below, the foregoing are the main ways in which the present invention improves on the earlier chamber.